How the Tax-Free Weekend Can Boost Your Back-to-School Savings (1440 × 600 px)
How the Tax-Free Weekend Can Boost Your Back-to-School Savings (411 × 600 px)

How the Tax-Free Weekend Can Boost Your Back-to-School Savings

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Inflation is affecting every corner of the economy, and that includes back-to-school shopping. Parents expect to spend $597 per student in grades K-12, down 10% from last year, according to a 2023 Deloitte Back-to-School Survey of 1,212 U.S. parents.

If you’re looking to mitigate this cost increase, you might want to consider taking advantage of the “tax-free weekend” offered in many states. Let’s take a look at how these weekends work, which states offer them, and what type of purchases are eligible.

What is a Tax-Free Weekend?

Most states charge sales tax, which is a tax levied on items you purchase. The more you spend, the more you’ll pay in taxes.

To help struggling consumers, many states offer a tax-free weekend during which they will not charge sales tax. Tax-free weekends are usually held right before school starts, so that parents and students can save on clothes, laptops, school supplies and other necessities. 

Woman marking her calendar and writing in personal planner.

The tax holiday applies to both in-store and online purchases. If you purchase an item online, the tax discount will still apply even if the item is delivered after the holiday is over.

Every state has its own limits on what you can buy tax-free. For example, most states have a limit of $100 for each clothing item. If you buy a $125 winter coat, you’ll still have to pay taxes on it. 

However, in most states, adults can also save money during the tax-free weekend because the discount doesn’t just apply to children’s clothing and accessory items. They can also purchase electronics and office supplies without paying a sales tax. Teachers and childcare professionals can also buy classroom supplies during this time.

You don’t have to be a resident of the state to benefit from the tax holiday. If you live near a state with a tax-free weekend, you can still take advantage of the discount.

Before you hit the stores, you should ensure that the tax-free discount doesn’t lead you to buy more than you can actually afford. Write out what you truly need to buy beforehand. Remember, you’re not saving money if you end up spending more than you would have otherwise.

Find Your State

Alabama

Dates: July 21-23

Tax rate: 4%

Eligible items: 

  • School supplies $50 or less per item
  • Clothing $100 or less per item 
  • Computers $750 or less 

Learn more

Arkansas

Dates: Aug. 5-6

Tax rate: 6.5%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing items $100 or less
  • Clothing accessories $50 or less per item 
  • Certain school supplies including pencils, notebooks, binders and more

Learn more

Connecticut

Dates: Aug. 20-26

Tax rate: 6.35%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing or shoes $100 or less per item

Learn more

Florida

Dates: July 24-Aug. 6

Tax rate: 6%

Eligible items: 

  • School supplies $50 or less per item
  • Clothes or accessories $100 or less

Learn more

Iowa

Dates: Aug. 4-5

Tax rate: 6%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothes and accessories $100 or less per item 

Learn more

Maryland

Dates: Aug. 13-19

Tax rate: 6%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing and shoes $100 or less per item 
  • The first $40 of a backpack

Learn more

Family walking together with shopping bags.

Massachusetts

Dates: Aug. 12-13

Tax rate: 6.25%

Eligible items: 

  • Certain retail goods worth $2,500 or less
  • Massachusetts always exempts the first $175 of a clothing item 

Learn more

Mississippi

Dates: July 28-29

Tax rate: 7%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing, shoes, or school supplies $100 or less per item

Missouri

Dates: Aug. 4-6

Tax rate: 4.225%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothes $100 or less
  • School supplies $50 or less per purchase
  • Computers $1,500 or less
  • Software $350 or less
  • Graphing calculators $150 or less

Learn more

New Jersey

Dates: Aug. 26-Sept. 4

Tax rate: 6.625%

Eligible items:  

  • Clothes and shoes
  • School supplies
  • Certain computers and supplies
  • Instructional materials
  • Some sports and recreation equipment

Learn more

New Mexico

Dates: Aug. 4-6

Tax rate: 5.125%

Eligible items:  

  • Clothing or shoes $100 or less per item
  • Computers or tablets $1,000 or less
  • Computer hardware $500 or less 
  • School supplies $30 or less per item

Learn more

Ohio

Dates: Aug. 4-6

Tax rate: 5.75%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothes $75 or less 
  • School supplies and instructional materials $20 or less

Learn more

Oklahoma 

Dates: Aug. 4-6

Tax rate: 4.5%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing or shoes $100 or less per item

Learn more

South Carolina

Dates: Aug. 4-6

Tax rate: 6%

Eligible items: 

  • School supplies, clothes and computers 

Learn more

Tennessee

Dates: July 28-30

Tax rate: 7%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing $100 or less
  • School and art supplies $100 or less
  • Computers $1,500 or less

Learn more

Texas

Dates: Aug. 11-13

Tax rate: 6.25%

Eligible items: 

  • Clothing, shoes, school supplies and backpacks $100 or less

Learn more

West Virginia 

Dates: Aug. 4-7

Tax Rate: 6%

Eligible Items: 

  • Clothing of $125 or less 
  • Laptop and tablet computers of $500 or less 
  • School supplies of $50 or less 

Learn More

NO SALES TAX HOLIDAY: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wyoming.

zinakumok
zinakumok

Written by zinakumok

Zina Kumok is a freelance writer specializing in personal finance. A former reporter, she has covered murder trials, the Final Four and everything in between. She has been featured in Lifehacker, DailyWorth and Time. Read about how she paid off $28,000 worth of student loans in three years at Conscious Coins. More from zinakumok

11 responses to “How to Boost Your Back-to-School Savings”

    • Hi Paul,
      Unfortunately at this time it does not appear that Wisconsin has any sales tax holidays scheduled for 2023. Please check back as we will continue to update this information.
      Sincerely,
      Katharina Reekmans

    • Wisconsin, I believe will fall under Minnesota. My state, NY will definitely not do a tax free weekend. They are looking for money.

  1. Arizona State doesn’t have this! Being so close to the border and all the parents from Mexico coming here to buy school supplies would really help!

  2. you may be able to enjoy tax free shopping for school supplies in several states. If you have several kids going to school this year, you can boost your savings picking up paper, pens, calculators, and back packs.

  3. Figures that Calif does not do this. For a state that is already broke (well that is what they tell us) helping schools for a change, would be just so not them. With all the money the lottery gives, why could they not help “Families” who live in this state. That would be to much like right…

  4. This is confusing — according to this site Oklahoma is 8/1, but on the OK Sales Tax website it is 8/7 to 8/9

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